Some customers without power are looking at more than a week in the dark

The New York City Marathon is canceled amid criticism

New York (CNN) -- Pockets of frustration among cold and hungry residents festered Friday in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, even as other areas sputtered back to life.

The biggest challenges in places like New Jersey and Staten Island -- where the majority of New York's storm-related deaths were recorded -- include food and electricity shortages.

Across 15 states and the District of Columbia, utilities reported that about 3.3 million customers remained without power.Some may stay in the dark for at least another week, reported area utility companies PSE&G and LIPA, the Long Island Power Authority.

People shivered, their heads peeking out from bulky sweatshirts, waiting hours at stations to fill their gas cans.

In New Jersey, where people are not allowed to pump their own gas, Gov. Chris Christie ordered odd-even rationing for purchases in 12 counties, with the hopeful goals of cutting lines and preventing a fuel shortage.

People in the affected counties with a license plate ending in an even number will be able to purchase fuel on even numbered days; the opposite being true for people with plates ending in an odd number.

Four days have passed since Sandy hit, and survivors pleaded for basic necessities.

"We're freezing. Bottom line is that we're so cold (be)cause we have nothing -- no electricity, no gas," said Staten Island resident Michele Belloli.

She spent a part of Friday walking around her neighborhood, her home for 40 years.

"It looks like something on TV. It looks like a newsreel from one of the other disasters. It doesn't look like my neighborhood," said Belloli.

Another Staten Island resident, Nick Camerada, described the storm and how the situation has worsened for him since it struck.

"The water was so high. It was up to this part of the door," he said, pointing to a spot above his waist.

"I couldn't get into the door. I went around the side of the house and I stood on a box that was floating, and I went through the window to get back in the house with my family."

Camerada, his wife and four sons scrambled to an upper floor. The first floor of their house flooded.

Thinking he had survived the worst, Camerada, who had a small engine repair business in his side yard, said he was hit again -- this time, by looters.

"I wake up this morning. They pushed my shed open and went through all my tools. I got nothing. ... There's nothing in the drawers but handprints," he said on Friday.

U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer, who toured the area Thursday, described conditions as grim.

"This is the worst thing I've ever seen, and it's killing me what these people have to go through," said the New York Democrat. "We'll get whatever federal help we can, that's for sure."

Help arrived Thursday night and into Friday in the form of 30 Red Cross trucks filled with food, water and medicine, while nearly 7,000 people spent the night in Red Cross shelters across the region.

The aid group said a massive feeding operation is under way on Long Island and across the Tri-State area, where residents continue to face food shortages.

Some $18 million in federal relief aid has been disbursed so far in the wake of the storm. Much of it is in the form of rental assistance, which can extend for up to 18 months for those with major home damage.

"A lot of folks who flooded did not have flood insurance," said Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Craig Fugate. "The lessons (we) learned from the past is not to wait to see how bad it is."

On Friday, Air Force planes began carrying 632 tons of equipment and supplies, including 69 vehicles, from California to the New York region.

Cleaning crews work in Manhattan's financial district following damage from Superstorm Sandy on Monday, November 12. View photos of New York's recovery.

Evelyn Faherty hugs a friend on Sunday, November 11, while discussing the damage done to her home by Superstorm Sandy in the Breezy Point neighborhood of Queens, New York.

Volunteers shovel sand and water out of the basement of Monir Islam's home in the Rockaway Park neighborhood of Queens, New York, on Sunday. The Rockaways peninsula in Queens was one of the areas hardest hit by Sandy. See photos of Rockaway's continuing struggles.

Furniture and other belongings are strewn under and around a beach house damaged by Sandy on Saturday, November 10, in Mystic Island, New Jersey.

Streets in Ortley Beach, New Jersey, were destroyed by Sandy.

Clean-up continues on Saturday, November 10 among piles of debris where a large section of the iconic boardwalk was washed away in the heavily damaged Rockaways.

Mac Baker, right, poses with her niece Nytaisha Baker next to pots of water she heats on the floor with small flames for a bit of warmth in Baker's unheated apartment in the Ocean Bay public housing projects in the Far Rockaway neighborhood in Queens on Friday, November 9.

Theresa Goddard, her apartment still without electricity, is overwhelmed while discussing her living conditions on Thursday, November 8, in the Brooklyn borough of New York.

A police officer carries blankets donated by Ikea for people affected by Superstorm Sandy in Brooklyn.

Debris from Superstorm Sandy is seen on a beach Thursday in Long Branch, New Jersey.

Troops from the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit and the U.S. Navy help local residents remove household items damaged by Superstorm Sandy on November 6, in the New Dorp Beach neighborhood of Staten Island, New York.

Voter Sheresa Walker uses a flashlight for poll worker Lloyd Edwards in a tent set up as a polling place in Queens, New York.

A poll worker directs people to a temporary polling center in the Coney Island section of Brooklyn, New York. Polling sites in Coney Island and the surrounding area were damaged during Superstorm Sandy.

Michael Fischkelta, 8, lies on his cot with his mother, Jenifer Wilson, in a Red Cross evacuation shelter set up in the gymnasium of Toms River High School on Monday, November 5, in Toms River, New Jersey. View photos of the recovery efforts in New York.

Ruth Hawfield sits next to her cot Monday in a Red Cross evacuation shelter at Toms River High School.

A woman fills out an early voting ballot on Sunday, November 4, in Jersey City, New Jersey. Gov. Chris Christie ordered early voting stations to stay open through the weekend in an effort to get people to vote despite the damage done by Superstorm Sandy.

A woman sifts through her mother's damaged home for items to save Sunday in the Breezy Point neighborhood of Queens, New York.

A workman repairs damage to the steeple of the First United Methodist Church on Sunday in Port Jefferson, New York.

People sift through their damaged home on Sunday in Breezy Point.

A statue of a firefighter stands in front of a burned down house Sunday in Rockaway, New York.

Abraham Cambrelen, 19, takes the Staten Island Ferry to go check on his mother Sunday while New York recovers from Hurricane Sandy.

Crowds wait for free gas on Saturday, November 3, at the Bedford Avenue Armory in Brooklyn, New York.

A house sits devastated by Superstorm Sandy on Friday, November 2, in Union Beach, New Jersey. The cost of the storm's damage in the U.S. is estimated at between $30 billion and $50 billion, according to disaster modeling firm Eqecat.

A baby picture lies beneath rubble in a neighborhood devastated by the storm in Union Beach on Friday.

Flood-damaged belongings sit on the side of the road in Union Beach on Friday.

Park Choul works by flashlight in his deli in New York's East Village on Thursday, November 1. More than 3.3 million customers remained without electricity in 15 states and the District of Columbia four days after Sandy barreled ashore.

Geronimo Harrison's apartment in the East Village remains without power or water Thursday. He's using candles for light and a gas stove for heat.

Water gets pumped out of a business in the East Village on Thursday.

A roller coaster sits in the Atlantic Ocean on Thursday after the Fun Town pier it sat on in Seaside Heights, New Jersey, was destroyed by Superstorm Sandy.

Amusement-park rides lie mangled on the beach after the Fun Town pier in Seaside Heights was destroyed.

The arcade at the FunTown pier in Seaside Heights is in ruins. Storm damage is expected to cost tens of billions of dollars.

The inside of a gas pump is exposed at a closed station that was recently under floodwater on Thursday, November 1, in Hoboken, New Jersey. Superstorm Sandy, which made landfall along the New Jersey shore, has left the state with a fuel shortage due to logistical problems and power failures.

People wait in line for fuel at a Shell Oil station onThursday in Fort Lee, New Jersey. Fuel shortages have led to long lines of cars at gasoline stations in many states.

Cars wait in line for fuel at a Gulf gas station in Fort Lee, New Jersey.

A woman leaves an Exxon gas station that was out of fuel on Thursday in North Bergen, New Jersey.

Bridget De La Torre holds her daughter Neve, 3, as daughter Paz sits nearby while they rest and charge devices on Thursday. They were at a shelter for those affected by Superstorm Sandy at Saints Peter and Paul Church in Hoboken, New Jersey. Bridget's family has no electricity or hot water, and their car was destroyed by flooding.

Waves break in front of an amusement park destroyed by Superstorm Sandy on Wednesday, October 31, in Seaside Heights, New Jersey. At least 56 people were killed in the storm. New Jersey suffered massive damage and power outages.

People walk near the remains of burned homes in the Breezy Point neighborhood of Queens, New York, on Wednesday.

An overview of the fire damage in Queens, New York, following Hurricane Sandy. Residents in hard-hit areas sifted through the wreckage of Sandy on Wednesday as millions remained without power.

Buildings on the shoreline are pictured from Air Force One as it prepares to land in Atlantic City, New Jersey, carrying President Barack Obama, who visited areas hardest hit by the unprecedented storm.

President Barack Obama speaks as New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie looks on, as they visit a shelter for Hurricane Sandy victims in Brigantine, New Jersey.

The shadow of Air Force One is cast on the water as it prepares to land in Atlantic City on Wednesday, October 31.

Residents in the Rockaway section of Queens, New York, wait to charge their phones at a government generator. Kennedy International Airport in New York and Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey resumed operations on limited schedules Wednesday, and the New York Stock Exchange commenced trading after being closed for two days.

Motorists drive through standing water in Hoboken, New Jersey. Known as the Mile Square City, the low-lying neighborhoods suffered deep flooding resulting from the storm surge associated with Hurricane Sandy.

A member of Army National Guard Unit Gulf 250 from Morristown, New Jersey, evacuates victims of Hurricane Sandy in Hoboken on Wednesday, October 31.

Residents traverse flooded streets as clean up operations begin in Hoboken, New Jersey.

New Jersey Natural Gas technician Carlos Rojas inspects a leaking gas main that is under water at a home damaged by Hurricane Sandy in Long Beach Island, New Jersey.

A resident looks through the remnants of his home in the Breezy Point neighborhood of Queens, New York.

Flood-damaged streets are viewed in the Rockaway section of Queens, New York, where the historic boardwalk was washed away due to Hurricane Sandy.

People walk past homes damaged by Hurricane Sandy in Long Beach Island, New Jersey.

Traders stand outside of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on Wednesday, October 31. U.S. equity markets resumed trading Wednesday for the first time this week after Hurricane Sandy.

People board the ferry, one of the few functioning transportation systems, in Hoboken, New Jersey, on Wednesday, October 31.

Members of the State University of New York Maritime Academy aid in the relief efforts, using row boats to help victims from in Hoboken, New Jersey.

Jimmy Lee, owner of The Nail Store, begins the cleanup of his shop from damage done by Hurricane Sandy in Hoboken, New Jersey.

Blaine Badick and her fiancee Andrew Grapsas cross a flooded street with their dog while leaving their home in Hoboken.

Residents walk through the area where the boardwalk was washed away in the Rockaway neighborhood of Queens, New York, on Wednesday.

The Rockaway boardwalk in Queens, New York, was stripped down to the piers by Superstorm Sandy.

People look at a damaged section of the Rockaway boardwalk in Queens, New York, on Wednesday.

People walk down a flooded street on Wednesday, October 31, in Hoboken, New Jersey.

A man charges his cellphone at a home that still has power in Hoboken, New Jersey, on Wednesday, October 31. As of Wednesday afternoon, more than 2 million customers in New Jersey were without power.

A firefighter stands on the porch of a home destroyed by fire in Queens on Wednesday.

Customers line up to buy supplies at an Ace Hardware with a power generator in Hoboken, New Jersey, on Wednesday.

Superstorm Sandy stripped the steps from the deck of this home in Long Beach Island, New Jersey.

Superstorm Sandy left a car buried in sand in Long Beach Island, New Jersey.

A helicopter flies past damaged homes in Long Beach Island, New Jersey, on Wednesday, October 31.

A man makes his way through floodwater and debris in Long Beach Island, New Jersey, on Wednesday.

A police car patrols an empty waterfront neighborhood without power in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on Wednesday.

Concrete piers are all that remain of the destroyed boardwalk in Atlantic City on Wednesday.

Debris from damaged property and the remains of a boardwalk litter the shoreline in Atlantic City on Wednesday.

Waterfront property in Atlantic City lays in tatters on Wednesday. Transportation in the state was crippled by floodwaters, as well.

"We are in a state of crisis all across this state," Newark, New Jersey, Mayor Cory Booker told CNN on Wednesday. "It's going to be a challenging time."

A police car patrols an empty waterfront neighborhood that lost power at dawn in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on Wednesday.

People wait for buses along New York's Sixth Avenue on Wednesday.

Superstorm Sandy stripped New York's historic Rockaway boardwalk down to its foundation.

A woman examines damage to the Rockaway neighborhood in New York on Wednesday.

Commuters ride a NY Waterway ferry from Jersey City, New Jersey, on Wednesday, the first day of operation since the storm hit.

A man rides on the front of a forklift while recording flood damage for insurance purposes in Little Ferry, New Jersey, on Wednesday.

Con Edison employee John Shammah pauses while working on a steam pipe on First Avenue in New York City on Wednesday.

CNN iReporter Jordan Shapiro captured this view of the Williamsburg Bridge in New York at 11 p.m. on Tuesday, October 30. Half of the bridge and Brooklyn is lit, while the Manhattan side and the surrounding part of the island remain shrouded in darkness.

Dog owners in Alexandria, Virginia, gathered to see the flood waters left by Hurricane Sandy on Tuesday.

Taxis sit in a flooded lot Tuesday in Hoboken, New Jersey.

People take pictures of a flooded street Tuesday in Hoboken.

A man stands near a homemade road block on Tuesday in Little Ferry, New Jersey.

People wait in line to fill containers with gas at a Shell station in Edison, New Jersey, on Tuesday. Superstorm Sandy left much of Bergen County flooded and without power.

Aerial images from the U.S. Coast Guard show the coastline in Brigantine, New Jersey, on Tuesday. Sandy struck land near Atlantic City, New Jersey, around high tide Monday night.

Homes and other buildings in Brigantine were destroyed in Sandy's wake. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie described the devastation in the state as "unthinkable."

Brigantine saw extensive damage from high winds and flooding.

Homes are flooded Tuesday in Tuckerton, New Jersey. President Barack Obama signed major disaster declarations for New Jersey and New York, clearing the way for federal aid.

A resident walks down a street covered in beach sand due to flooding from Hurricane Sandy in Long Beach, New York on Tuesday.

Firefighters work to extinguish flames in a home in the Breezy Point neighborhood of Queens on Tuesday. The massive fire broke out during the storm and destroyed at least 80 homes

Ted Wondsel, owner of Ted's Fishing Station in Long Beach, assesses the damage to his business Tuesday.

People wait outside a shelter at the Bergen County Technical Schools Teterboro Campus on Tuesday in Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey.

Utility workers from Delmarva Power replace a power pole that was damaged during Hurricane Sandy in Ocean City, Maryland, on Tuesday.

Dale Kelly sits on a bench Tuesday on a flooded street in Ocean City, New Jersey, which was hit hard by Superstorm Sandy.

Ted Wondsel, left, of Point Lookout works on part of a dock destroyed in the storm in Long Beach on Tuesday.

West Broadway in Long Beach is covered in beach sand due to flooding from Hurricane Sandy on Tuesday.

Residents walk along a street covered in beach sand after floodwaters from Superstorm Sandy retreated Tuesday in Long Beach.

A small plane damaged in the storm sits on a runway in Farmingdale, New York, on Tuesday.

Streets remain flooded in portions of Ocean City, New Jersey.

Utility workers repair a traffic signal damaged by the storm in Ocean City, New Jersey, on Tuesday.

A Virgin Mary statue stands in the Breezy Point neighborhood of Queens, New York, on Tuesday after a fire fed by high winds destroyed at least 80 homes, officials said.

President Barack Obama outlines the federal government's response to Superstorm Sandy at the Red Cross headquarters in Washington.

Firefighters work to contain the fire in Queens on Tuesday. Some 200 firefighters battled the six-alarm blaze.

A man surveys damage to sailboats Tuesday at a marina on City Island in New York.

"My message to the federal government: no bureaucracy, no red tape, get resources where they're needed as fast as possible, as hard as possible, and for the duration," Obama said in Washington Tuesday. Both Obama and Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney canceled campaign events.

People stand on a mound of construction dirt on Tuesday to view a section of the uptown boardwalk in Atlantic City, New Jersey, that was destroyed by flooding.

A firefighter looks through debris in Queens on Tuesday. In September, the same area endured severe weather as a powerful cold front brought heavy rain, high winds and a tornado.

A malfunctioning generator billows black smoke at a building in New York on Tuesday.

"We know that Staten Island took a particularly hard hit from Sandy," said Napolitano. "We want to make sure that the right resources are brought here as quickly as possible."

Ahead of her visit, Napolitano issued a temporary waiver of the Jones Act, a move that allows oil tankers coming in from the Gulf of Mexico to enter Northeastern ports to relieve fuel shortages.

"The administration's highest priority is ensuring the health and safety of those impacted by Hurricane Sandy, and this waiver will remove a potential obstacle to bringing additional fuel to the storm-damaged region," she said.

The move also waives clean air admission requirements, allowing more refined oil to be brought into the region, though where it goes from there is unclear.

"Just getting the product there doesn't get it to the retail site," said Fugate. "Many of the gas stations don't have power."

Worst-hit New York state suffered 48 deaths, including 41 in New York City, authorities said. Twenty of the dead were killed in Staten Island, where the latest deaths included two boys ages 4 and 2, ripped from their mother's arms by floodwater.

In addition to the human toll, the price for damage is stunning: between $30 billion and $50 billion, according to disaster modeling firm EQECAT.

In areas where entire neighborhoods remain dark, utilities worked to restore services.

Con Edison, a New York utility company, has passed the "halfway mark," having restored approximately 460,000 of the 910,000 customers who were affected by Sandy, according to John Miksad, senior vice president of electric operations.

"We're doing our damnedest to get our power back as quickly as possible,"he said.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, in a letter to utilities, warned of consequences if authorities discover they failed to prepare properly.

"Under such circumstances, I would direct the Public Service Commission to commence a proceeding to revoke your certificates," he wrote.

Under scrutiny,the New York City Marathon -- scheduled for Sunday -- was canceled, the city's mayor said Friday.

"While holding the race would not require diverting resources from the recovery effort, it is clear that it has become the source of controversy and division," Mayor Michael Bloomberg said in a statement.

"We cannot allow a controversy over an athletic event -- even one as meaningful as this -- to distract attention away from all the critically important work that is being done to recover from the storm and get our city back on track."

The superstorm also dumped up to 3 feet of snow in West Virginia and Maryland, leaving thousands without power.

The National Weather Service predicted a nor'easter next week from the mid-Atlantic states into New England. But the forecast said the storm would be far weaker than Sandy.

A mother learns that her newborn is part of a hospital evacuation. Facebook posts from a member of the HMS Bounty turn ominous. A man worries about the wind and rain, but another force of nature hits home.

Ashley Murray became the first female president of Liberty Industrial Gases and Welding Supplies Inc. in Brooklyn. But now the family history Murray was charged with preserving is at risk of ending after Superstorm Sandy.

The adage says "a picture is worth a thousand words," but when Leeann Lewandowski happened upon a photograph of her late mother on Facebook after her home was destroyed in Superstorm Sandy, she was speechless.